A 'tirade' of allegations from city deputy leader John Hemming that his council's election officials were lax in preventing growing and widespread voting fraud have been censored.

Coun Hemming appeared before the High Court to claim electoral corruption in Birmingham has grown from a cottage industry into something which has become a real threat to democracy.

But his claims that council election officials were not taking action to prevent it were excised from his witness state-ment after objections from a barrister hired by his own local authority.

Philip Coppel QC told the court the city's returning officer, council chief executive Lin Homer, and elections officer John Owen were concerned about voting fraud. But they had no legal duty or powers to deal with it.

"It is important to bear in mind that the returning officer must not wrongly disenfranchise people," he said.

"It is not her role to look behind ballots that are valid and have been properly returned. She is under no duty to do so. She has no power to do so. She does not have the means to do so," he stated.

Airing Coun Hemming's allegations in public would be prejudicial and unhelpful. The city's deputy leader admitted that his evidence of alleged corruption - ranging from a Labour vote forging factory to death threats to postmen, bribery, and setting alight a postbox containing postal votes - was based on hearsay.

Mr Jerry Hayes, a former MP representing Aston Labour council-lors Mohammed Kazi and Mohammed Islam, contended that it was no more than "tittle tattle".

Both councillors and a third, Muhammed Afzal, ultimately topped the poll in the Aston Ward city election last June. All have denied any wrongdoing.